10th Grade students are currently studying “Speak,” a young adult novel, in their English classes. The book is about a young teenager who struggles to fit in to her local high school.
Students are currently focusing on symbols and themes in the book, the themes of “isolation” and “loneliness” in particular. They also compared the novel’s themes to ones found in another work of art. Under the guidance of Mr. Matthew Allsopp, the head of MUIDS’s Modern Languages department, students compared “Speak” with the song “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” by the band Green Day. This exercise helped them identify common themes in different works of art, an important skill for studying in universities around the world.
After working together students completed the remaining activities on their own while Mr. Allsopp remained available for questions via Google Chat. This step of the learning process, often called the independent practice, is perhaps the most important; it gives students time to practice what they’ve learned on their own as they continue to work towards mastery.
10th grade students will continue studying “Speak” throughout this academic quarter.
